


Bring Marshmallows, We'll Make Smores

by Juliko



Category: Harvest Moon
Genre: Camping, Domestic Fluff, Female Friendship, Fluff, Marshmallows
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-06
Updated: 2020-06-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:00:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24574201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Juliko/pseuds/Juliko
Summary: Claire invites Mary to go camping with her on Mother's Hill. Written for Nahoqo as part of the Spring Bokumono 2020 Exchange.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4
Collections: Bokumono Exchanges





	Bring Marshmallows, We'll Make Smores

The sun was still high in the sky when Mary made her way up Mother’s Hill, her backpack filled to the brim with all the supplies she brought with her.

“Would you like to go camping with me?” The question her friend asked her was so out of the left field, Mary thought she was hearing things at first. Someone actually invited her to go camping with them? She had never done any such thing before despite having read plenty of books with characters who reveled in the outdoors. Still, a desire to actually experience it first hand overpowered any doubts she had, so she accepted her friend’s proposal.

That was about a week or so ago, and Mary spent some time trying to prepare for the camping excursion ahead. She bought a tent, a sleeping bag, some portable cookware, bags of food, a lighter, and some matches just in case. She also brought two big books with her in case she had the itch to read. As she ascended Mother’s Hill, a figure slowly came into view. A young woman with long, straw colored hair that gleamed in the afternoon sun was on her knees, placing some wood into a pile. Her blue overalls had some spots of dirt on them, probably from working outside.

“Claire!” Mary called out to her, waving one arm from side to side in doing so. Claire swiveled around to take in Mary’s presence, and her blue eyes widened.

“Hey, Mary! You made it!” Claire bounded over to her, beaming. “That looks heavy. You didn’t push yourself too hard, did you?”

Mary shook her head. “No no. My family and I come up here every other Monday, so I’m used to the climb,” She told her reassuringly, slowly putting her backpack down on the ground.

Once Mary took a minute to relax, as her backpack started to weigh her down, she went right to work lighting the firewood Claire had put out. It took no time at all for the sparks to ignite a flame that gradually rose in size as it consumed the wood around it. The air around it heated immediately, and Mary could feel it from just two feet away. Claire immediately got started on setting up metal poles to support her tent. Mary offered to help, and the two of them managed to get the tent set up. They then took some time to set up Mary’s tent, since they had planned to sleep in their own tents.

“I must admit…” Mary began as she smoothed out a wrinkled part of the tent when she set it up. “I’ve never actually gone camping before.”

Claire’s mouth fell ajar. “Really? You’ve never gone camping?”

Again, Mary shook her head. “Not once.”

“Not even for a school field trip or something?” Claire inquired.

“Nope,” The whole thing was a completely new scenario to Mary. She had heard plenty of stories about all the activities one did when camping. Sitting around a lit fire telling scary stories, cooking marshmallows and making s’mores with crackers and chocolate strips, snuggling in a warm sleeping bag, listening to the sounds of owls and chirping crickets when one slept...Mary’s bottom lip began to wobble. There had been opportunities for her to go camping during her childhood, but all of them either conflicted with plans she already had, or she just wasn’t invited.

“Well,” Claire rolled her long sleeves. “Looks like today’s a great day for me to educate you on the wonders of camping!” She proclaimed, voice brimming with confidence and cheer.

With that, Mary’s tent was finished and standing tall. It would be a while before it got dark, so the girls took the time to share stories and enjoy themselves in the silence of the mountain. At one point, Mary looked up and saw the silhouette of a hawk soaring across the sky. It looked completely black against the bright blue sky and the shining sun, almost like a shadow come to life. The hawk seemed to float on the wind, only flapping its wings once or twice as it caught a breeze or two.

Gradually, the sky went from its majestic blue to a vivid orange, with splashes of pink and purple, a scene straight out of a painting. Claire had set up a campfire, and the flame danced merrily, crackling and cackling. Mary could feel the heat against her face, watching as she held her marshmallows over it by way of two sticks. One was to eat, and the other was to save for making s’mores. She had just put her marshmallow in the flame, so it wasn’t ready yet. Claire followed suit.

“There’s lots of ways you can cook marshmallows like this,” Claire explained. “You can either heat them up a little bit, or you can cook them all crispy and black.”

Mary shrugged. “I don’t think I’d want my marshmallows to be completely burnt,” She said with a brief chuckle.

Mary kept her eyes on her marshmallow, watching it go from a pure white to a golden brown. Not completely burnt, but just enough that it was no longer white. When it was ready, she pulled it back and blew on it to cool it off. She knew it wouldn’t quite cool it off, but she didn’t mind. Claire was already chowing down on her marshmallow. Slowly, Mary took a bite, though she had to use extra force to yank the piece off the marshmallow, since it still stretched out when she ate it. It seemed to melt in her mouth, and wasn’t as hard or chunky as a regular marshmallow.

“Mmm! This is good!” Mary said, holding a hand to her cheek as she savored the soft, squishy taste of melted marshmallow. “It’s a lot easier to chew than regular marshmallows.”

Claire smiled. “I’m so glad you like it!” She pulled out a chocolate bar and a box of crackers. “You ready for some s’mores?”

She had been waiting for this all night, so of course Mary was ready.

But Claire hadn’t only brought crackers to make s’mores with. She also brought a pack of chocolate cookies to make them taste even better, to give Mary the choice if she wanted either those or crackers. Mary picked the regular crackers, as she wanted to experience s’mores with those first. When she put the cracker sandwich together, she took a bite. The chocolate and the marshmallow both melted in her mouth, mixing with the salty crackers as she chewed on them. So this was what s’mores tasted like. The combined sweetness and saltiness resulted in an explosion of combined flavors that made her taste buds yearn for more.

“These are…” Mary paused to swallow, as it was rude to talk with one’s mouth full. “Really good,” A smile played at her lips before she took another bite.

“Now you know the magic of s’mores!” Claire proclaimed before taking a bite of her own cookie s’mores.

Before long, the sky was draped with a deep rich hue, adorned with sparkling stars and crowned with a full moon. Claire had already fallen asleep in her tent, and Mary lay in her sleeping bag on her stomach, taking some time to read a book under a flashlight before heading off to sleep. The whisper of a night breeze made the leaves in the brushes and wildflowers rustle, and the soft cooing of an owl made for a merry melody. Mary’s eyes grew heavy the more she read, which meant it was time for bed. She nestled in her sleeping bag, taking in the sounds of the night before letting darkness take her away.

Tonight, one of her bucket list dreams had been fulfilled. She had always wanted to go camping at some point. Now, Claire had given her the opportunity, and she didn’t regret it even once.

When morning came, the girls packed up and descended Mother’s Hill, ready for the new day. “Claire?”

“Hm?” Claire looked up, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

A grateful smile played at Mary’s lips as she told her, “Thank you so much for taking me camping. I had a lot of fun.”

Claire smiled right back, as she always did. “You’re welcome! Let’s do this again sometime!”

Mary nodded in agreement. She liked that idea a lot.


End file.
